''Car and Driver'' is a

racing video game Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic raci ...

for

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few op ...

developed by Lerner Research and published by

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by former Apple Inc., Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry ...

in 1992.

Gameplay

The game's title screen and menus are designed to imitate the appearance of pages in a ''

Car and Driver ''Car and Driver'' (''CD'' or ''C/D'') is an American automotive enthusiast magazine first published in 1955. In 2006 its total circulation was 1.23 million. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, who purchased it from its prior owner Hachette Fi ...

'' magazine issue. Selecting a car directs the player to a full-length review or retrospective of the vehicle by a Car and Driver editor alongside detailed technical statistics. The game features 10 controllable cars: The

Porsche 959 The Porsche 959 is a sports car manufactured by German automobile manufacturer Porsche from 1986 to 1993, first as a Group B rally car and later as a road legal production car designed to satisfy FIA homologation regulations requiring at least ...

Toyota MR2 The Toyota MR2 is a line of two-seater, MR layout, mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive sports cars, manufactured in Japan and marketed globally by Toyota from 1984 until 2007 over three generations: W10 (1984–1989), W20 (1989–1999) and W30 (1999� ...

Ferrari F40 The Ferrari F40 (Type F120) is a Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, mid-engine, rear-wheel drive sports car engineered by Nicola Materazzi with styling by Pininfarina. It was built from 1987 until 1992, with the LM and GTE race car version ...

Lotus Esprit The Lotus Esprit is a sports car built by Lotus Cars from 1976 to 2004 at their Hethel, England factory. It has a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. Together with the Lotus Elise / Exige, it is one of Lotus' most long-lived models. Th ...

, Ferrari 250 Testarossa,

Shelby Cobra The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a List of Ford engines#8 Cylinder, Ford V8 engine. It was produced intermittently in both the Uni ...

Lamborghini Countach The Lamborghini Countach ( ) is a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car produced by the Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini from 1974 until 1990. It is one of the many exotic designs dev ...

, Eagle Talon, Corvette ZR-1, and Mercedes-Benz C11. The game showcases 10 "tracks", although small sections of famous driving roads such as California Route 1 and even a parking lot are included as playable areas. Of particular note is the strange Dobbs Raceway, which takes its name from the

Church of the Subgenius The Church of the SubGenius is a parody religion that satirizes better-known belief systems. It teaches a complex philosophy that focuses on J. R. "Bob" Dobbs, purportedly a salesman from the 1950s, who is revered as a prophet by the Church. SubGen ...

parody religion's figurehead J.R. "Bob" Dobbs and appears to have been an inside joke by the developers. The side of the track is adorned with gigantic images of Dobbs, Subgenius propaganda, and low-flying aircraft.

Reception

Computer Gaming World ''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American Video game journalism, computer game magazine that was published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 199 ...

'' praised the game's realism and controls, stating that it "offers more interesting cars than any competing driving software". Power Unlimited gave the game a score of 90% commenting: "Car & Driver was one of the best racing games of its time. Cars and backgrounds looked fantastic and a very high speed could be achieved. The perfect pastime for a car thief in jail."

References

1992 video games Advergames DOS games DOS-only games Electronic Arts games Magazine-branded video games Racing video games set in the United States Racing video games Single-player video games Video games set in Arkansas {{ElectronicArts-stub